The Dawn of My Days (At My Order)
by Ryoko Tsukiko
Summary: As a 9-year-old orphan, Aneko will do what ever it takes to protect her siblings. One night she makes a vow to do just that, but her resolve is tested years later. How far will she go when a powerful Pureblood makes an offer she can't refuse? To save her beloved twins she must do the unspeakable; she must give her life.
1. Chapter I: Smiley Stranger

BOOOM! Another fork of lightning lit up the sky. The rain was coming down in buckets now, and I had just taken shelter one of the awnings in the town's marketplace. I heaved a sigh, "Well, I guess I can forget keeping this rice dry." I found a dry patch and sat down, forced to wait out the downpour.

The streets were empty now, except for those, who like me, were scrambling to find shelter. _I hope Taro and Aiko made it home okay. God knows we'd be doomed if one of them caught a cold. Or worse..._ I thought. They'd left that morning, saying they had a job cleaning house at a neighbor's; it was almost 5:30 now. I was already late, and given I hadn't seen them nearly all day, I knew the twins would start worrying soon.

I held the bag of rice to my chest and drew up my knees. It wasn't even half full, but it was all I could afford, and it would have to last for a few days. We had some leftover nira chive soup back home, but I wasn't sure I could make it go as far as I needed it to.

As I continued to worry and the street had completely emptied, a sleek black sedan rolled slowly around the corner. I paid it no attention, that kind of thing happened every now and again here. Probably just some rich person passing through, needing a place to spend the night, or a foreign tourist wanting to see a small town. The car pulled to a stop at the end of the street.

I was paying attention now. With the pouring rain, and the vendors no longer out, why would anyone come here now? The door opened, and an umbrella popped open as a foot emerged. A handsome man gracefully stepped over a puddle in the street, and not missing a beat, began to approach.

"What in the...?" I whispered to myself. His eyes found my face through the rain and his strides lengthened. I rose, not sure of anything. Who was this guy? What did he want with me? I can't run, can I? I couldn't go home and lead him straight to Taro and Aiko.

My skin tightened and the hair on my arms stood up. My teeth chattered, and I wasn't sure if it was from the cold or the fear. I clutched the bag of rice, prepared to use it as a weapon. I steeled myself, and planted my feet at shoulder's distance apart. _Oh God, what if he's from Social Services?_ With that thought my bravery blinked out like a light. My arms turned to jelly and I heard a soft "thump" as the bag of rice hit the ground. Did I let go? I stood there, frozen like a rabbit. It didn't matter if I ran or not, he would probably take me with our without the twins.

Trying to think of something, _anything_, he came to a stop in front of me. And I was taken aback by his appearance. A warm smile and young green eyes told me he was way too young to be working for them. He lowered his umbrella and ducked under the awning. He stooped and picked the bag of rice that had nearly spilled. "Hello. Um, could I take you somewhere to eat? You look like you're hungry." He held out the rice.

I took the rice and bowed awkwardly. He was strangely beautiful, especially for his age... "Thank you, sir, but I can't ask you to do that for me." I rose, wanting to walk away, but with nowhere to go.

"No, I insist. I'll buy you enough so you'll have leftovers. Please, if anything just speak with me for a few moments." His big green eyes were so hopeful, it was just sad.

I looked at him and asked slowly, "So if I talk to you for a while, you would buy me dinner?" I had to admit, I'd had worse offers. _Unstop the toilet and I'll give you half a bag of rice..._ Yuck, I shuddered inwardly.

He smiled sweetly and said, "Yes, I want to hear your story."

"My story," I pointed to myself, "for a big dinner?" I held my arms wide to show how big, and he agreed, nodding vigorously. "Why should I trust you?"

He shrugged, "Have you trusted anyone else so far?"

"No," I said cautiously, "but that still doesn't give me a reason to trust a random stranger." I didn't mean to be harsh, but it sounded that way. "Oh, I apologize," I bowed again, "I didn't mean to be rude."

"It's alright, but," he began with a tint of mystery to his voice, "if what I hear is true, I believe I know someone who can help you."

"Wait, you've been asking about me?" I asked, shocked.

He answered, unabashed, "Yes, and honestly no one in particular knows much about you. So," he held out his hand to me, "last chance."

I hesitated, but what did he want to know about me? Seeing that I didn't have too much to lose I took his hand, "But you have to tell me your name before I go anywhere with you."

He grinned like a child, "Ichijo, my name is Takuma Ichijo. You can just call me Takuma."

"Okay," I felt better now that I had a good idea of who he was, "I'm Aneko Tamutso." He held out his umbrella for us, and I remembered just how long it had been since my story began.


	2. Chapter II: Way Back When (Who She Was)

She was American. She was tall and lean, with thick blonde hair that hung at her back, and big, brown doe eyes. Her smile made the children laugh and when she sung she put the songbirds to shame. Mother was always generous, giving what she could, when she could. There was always a roof over our heads, and food on the table. She read us the Bible for our bedtime stories, always explaining them on a child's level. She sang American love songs while she French braided my hair into two pigtails.

My mother was married, but I never once saw our father. I often asked about him, and mother always told me that I looked exactly like him, tall, blue eyes, and light brown hair. "Kind, hardworking, loyal, honest, and strong." That was her description. She told me he was always working overseas, that's why I never saw him.

When I turned five she had Taro and Aiko, and I was overjoyed. I'd always wanted a brother or sister, and now I had both. I loved to help mother with them, loving them as if they were my own little babies. I remember mother would take us grocery shopping every Sunday, and sometimes she'd treat us to ice cream.

Taro and Aiko had just turned four years old, and I noticed mother got weary very easily; this surprised me, given she was only in her mid-thirties and otherwise healthy. She bruised like a peach, and bled severely from something as small as a paper cut. She ate less, and rested more often. Two months later she was admitted to the hospital.

She fought Chronic Myelotic Leukemia for eight months... And, I watched over her the entire time. She bruised with the lightest pressure, so I had to be extremely gentle. No matter what she was fed, she lost weight, getting down to almost 98 pounds (44.45 kgs.), and as tall as she was, that was not good. Her long, beautiful blonde hair began to turn gray and fall out in tufts. The doctors eventually just shaved her head, and I could tell she wanted to cry just as much as I was when they did it. She couldn't even keep one thing that helped her feel beautiful. Her knees and shoulders made her groan in pain from the swelling, and I cried nearly every time I saw her. But, being as selfless- and stubborn- as Sakura Tamutso was she'd hold me with her weak little arms, insisting she was fine. It took everything from her, everything but her spirit.

Every second she could hold a pen she made plans. She knew she was going to die, so she never bothered worrying about it. Even until her last breath, she was a no-nonsense woman. Yeah, she knew what she wanted... Eventually each one of her accounts were spent on medications and treatments that were supposed to help her, but didn't do anything.

On a rainy Sunday, I'd dropped Taro and Aiko off at their babysitter's, and I walked into her room. And to this day, have I never felt more helpless. Mother was so pale, and when she saw me, she could barely even smile. The nurse told me... she told me... that she couldn't fight it anymore. The nurse left us. I was terrified, I'd been afraid this day was creeping up on us, and now I was filled with uncertain dread.

"Momma?" that was all I could say. She looked so frail, but I wanted to hold onto her so bad. "I love you so much Momma. Does it hurt?" It probably felt like someone was tearing her limb from limb, and she knew that I knew. How many nights had I stayed awake and watched her sob in her sleep, grinding her teeth audibly?

"No, Aneko, I'm alright," she managed a small smile. Funny, how she would tell me that she wasn't in pain on her death bed. She really was the kindest person I'd ever known. She continued, "but I want you to do this, for me. Please, do it for me."

"Yes, Momma, anything," I was already sobbing, trying to breathe and think at the same time.

"Raise Taro and Aiko as if I were right by your side. Love them with both mine and your love combined. Teach them to trust God, just like you do," she squeezed my hand, her tendons standing out, but her grip was even weaker thank little Aiko's. To this day I wonder if she knew that my faith on that day was about as stable as a house of cards. "Never forget how much I love you, little one. Oh, man I'll miss you. Okay now, there, there honey." She rubbed my back and sung me songs in English until she let me go and told me, "Go with that man, afterwards, okay?"

I nodded, wiping the tears out of my eyes and giving her a shaky, "Okay..." and she laid her head back. I knew what she meant, and she spoke again.

"Be strong Aneko, be the lionhearted little woman I know you are. Have mercy on those who harm you, and love everyone, my little angel. Love them all, because I love you." She smiled and hugged me one last time. Trust me; you don't know what guilt is like until something like that happens... "I know this will only be until we see each other again, but good-bye."

"Good-bye, Momma. I know you'll watch us from heaven, right?"

She chuckled a little, "Yes, child, of course." she released me, and she sank back into her pillow. Her smile was pure ecstasy as her eyes slid closed. Her last breath was a sigh of relief and I knew then she was free. Her hurt was over, she could be free now. I was could only be happy for her momentarily, given my own grief and loss hit me like a semi-truck. I turned around and went to the man at the door, not wanting to come back to this horrible place ever again.

He silently took my hand while I sobbed, and we went to get Aiko and Taro, then to our house. At home, I packed things for the twins and myself, and even some of mother's things. I packed sturdy, warm clothes for us, and the twins' favorite stuffed animals in the biggest back-packs I could find. I went into mother's room and immediately went for the "secret" box of cash she kept under her bed. It was marked EMERGENCY CASH in her curly, funny-looking English. I opened it, finding 390,090.15 yen ($5,000). I put it all in a baggie in the bottom of my back-pack. Next, her leather-bound Bible that smelled like our house, and her wedding ring, which in recent months had been way too big for her thinning fingers. I took my favorite pictures of our family out of their frames, and packed them, including one I found in the bottom the money box. I assumed it was my father, given he had light brown hair and blue eyes that were the same color as mine, and also by the fact that he was standing right next to a much younger version of my mother. It was their wedding picture, and I quickly stuffed it away, not wanting to look anymore.

I thought that we might have a shot at finding our Dad, so I kept that in mind as I climbed into the car. The man was a social worker, and he told us we'd be going to an orphanage soon.


	3. Chapter II B: First Orphans, Then Yankis

That's when I started thinking. And the thoughts I had weren't good ones. The thing that made it hurt, though, is that they were things I'd have to deal with, very soon. _One_: I had to tell Taro and Aiko eventually; it couldn't wait forever. _Two_: if we went to an orphanage they'd most likely try to adopt us out ASAP. And given the current circumstances, they'd probably choose the two cute little blonde twins who were still young enough to be influenced, and cooperatively put on matching sailor outfits. Not the stubborn, now-emotionally-traumatized nine-year-old girl (who would definitely not be putting on a sailor outfit anytime soon). So, someone would pick just me, or just the twins. Most likely the latter. _Three_: separation was _not_ an option. Mommy told me to love them with both mine and her love. I had to keep them.

And with that, my decision was made. During the long, very boring, ride in Mr. Social Worker's car, the wheels in my head were spinning like a top.

At the orphanage we shared a room with three other children who very much needed baths. I'd decided to tell the little ones what happened after dinner, and we would sleep here tonight. After that it would be our time to leave before we got too comfortable. As I assumed our dinner was pathetic, and served by a squat, squinty-faced woman with a toothy smile. "Do you want me to help you settle in, little girl?" she asked as she placed a fat hand on my shoulder.

"No thank you, ma'am. I wouldn't want to interrupt your schedule." I gave her a small, shy smile. In truth, the place ran like clock-work, and it was extremely irritating, though I don't know why...

The rain pecked on the window and I sat down on the very thin mattress of the creaky bottom bunk. I pulled Taro and Aiko both onto my lap. I opened my mouth, but Taro beat me to it.

"Where's Momma, Aneko? Was her boo-boos hurting again? I hope not..." he looked from me to the window, deep in his child's sincere worry. Tears prickled at my eyes.

"Yeah, and why were you so sad today, sissy?" Aiko's little blonde eyebrows folded with worry as well.

I felt a tear slip down my cheek, _oh no_, "Mommy... mommy left, and she won't be coming back." My voice strained, and I tried desperately not to choke.

"Where's Momma at?" they asked together. _Oh God, give me strength!_ They looked up at me with Sakura's big, brown eyes, and I almost stopped right there.

"She... she went to heaven." That was all I could bring myself to say. I quickly gathered more courage, "But she told me to raise you with mine and her love both. She loved you so, so much, and she said she'd watch out for us in heaven."

That did the trick, we were all crying now with the twins wailing, "Momma! Momma, momma... Aaaa-neee-koooo! I want my mommyyyyy!" I cried with them, too, rubbing their backs hoping that this would just be some terrible nightmare I could wake up from.

But, of course, that would be too much for my nine-year-old self to ask now, wouldn't it? So we all sat there and sobbed, choking and trying to catch our breath, and eventually the twins had just worn themselves out to the point where they passed out in my arms. I carefully laid them in the bunk we'd cried in, and then went down the hall for a drink of water. The girl with the puffy, red eyes and tear-stained face who hadn't gotten an adequate amount of sleep in months looked back at me in the mirror. I'd cried my eyes dry, so now only dry, choked gasps and moans escaped me. _"Be the lionhearted little woman I know you are..." Did she know something that I didn't know?_

She told me to strong, but how, _how_ could I be strong, when I was so weak? I placed my hands on the mirror, and thought about retching into the sink in front of me. Somehow, I didn't, _that's right; because you were still too upset to eat the gruel they served you._ I splashed cold water on my face, because that was what ran no matter which faucet I turned on, hot or cold. _Great... Swell place you got here... She wants me to raise Taro and Aiko as if she were with me... I thought of the things that mom would want for her babies. One: For me to teach them God's ways. Two: For them to be safe, with food and a warm bed to go home to. Three: For them to be happy. Four: For them to remember how happy she was when she was alive, not how miserably sick she was. Five: For them to grow up strong._

That was the most I could think of; I took my hands off the mirror, and looked at myself. I then spoke in a shaky voice that sounded like a stranger's. "I, Aneko Tamutso, solemnly sw-ear, with God as my wi-itness, to do anything a-and everything to ma-ake Taro and Aiko happy, str-ong, healthy, wi-ise, safe, and ki-ind." I sucked in a deep, determined breath, "I will go to the ends of the earth to make sure they're okay, above all else. I will love and cherish them above anything else- including myself- and I'll raise them as if they were my own. I swear on my own life, _my own life_, that I will do anything for their sake.

I took a few minutes for me to catch my breath. I knew my eyes weren't going to stay dry for very long, but right now, I had my priorities straight. And I definitely wasn't first.

It seemed they'd called lights out while I was in the bathroom, but I think the pudgy-faced woman just let me be, and for that, I was extremely thankful. The halls were dark and the only sounds were those chain-saw-like droning of sleeping children. Except in the orphanage office...

"The last time I checked, the older one went to their room and told the little ones, then they all cried for an hour at least," Pudgy whispered, behind the cracked door that let one dim beam of light shine on the floor. _Well, well, I wonder who those children are?_

"You know that we'll have to split them up to get a shred of hope for adopting them out. You know how people are about the older ones... and with those little ones, they're so cute they could be ax-murderers and someone would still take them," Mr. Social Worker replied. _Thanks_, and I called him every bad name that I could think of while my blood boiled.

"That's all too true," Pudgy said with a sigh, "I'll get them in the system in two days, there's so much to do around here, it's hard to keep up..." she sighed again, "Would you mind helping?" she asked, and with that they started talking about mundane adult things.

I was so mad about the way they'd talked about us, like we were dogs or something! I hated it, but I had to go to bed instead of leaving these hateful people behind right now. Somehow I thought it would be harder to go to sleep with all the things weighing on my mind. Turns out, I was wrong.

The sun was already in the sky when I woke, and Taro and Aiko were still out-cold. I spent the entire day making plans for tonight, because there was no way we'd be spending another night here. With the window wide open, I stuck my head out. Good, we could use the fire escape to escape into the alley below.

I went to the kitchen-breakfast was long over with, thankfully- and quietly rifled through the cabinets for "running food" for lack of a better term. I ate as much as I could at lunch, knowing what was coming our way, and though it pained me, I also encouraged the twins to eat their portions of mystery meat.

They looked at me, then Aiko announced so innocently it almost want to cry, "If Aneko says it's okay, I'll do it!" then she bravely swallowed big chunks to avoid tasting it. _Ugh... so...slimy..._

"Yeah, Aneko knows best!" Taro agreed, pounding his little fist on the table. He did the same as Aiko, and my heart wrenched so hard it hurt. _So they really do trust me..._

Night fell and I told Taro and Aiko to pay very close attention to me. "Now, I'm only doing this because I love you. I'll have to explain the rest later, okay?" I said as I zipped their jackets on, and placing their backpacks under the bed, out of immediate sight. "When they tell us it's time to go to bed, we're going to pretend to go to sleep and when I say so, we're going to leave, but you guys can't say anything, okay?"

They nodded quickly, giggling, "We'll trick the fat lady, won't we Aneko!" Aiko said as I placed the jar of mystery-meat grease I'd taken from the kitchen underneath with our backpacks.

"Then they won't know we left until the morning," Taro smiled.

"That's right" I agreed, ruffling their feathery blonde hair, "but you've got to do what I tell you, right when I tell you."

"'Kay!" they said at the same time that I put them to bed. I kissed both of their foreheads, put on my jacket, and crawled into the bunk above theirs, with nothing to do but wait.

Almost an hour later, Pudgy stuck her head in the door, holding a dim lantern. I cracked my eye enough to see her moving her hand in the half open door. _Counting us..._ She counted us every hour on the hour, three more times. After she finished her fourth round, I quietly climbed out of bed. I rubbed the twins' backs until they woke sluggishly.

"Come on, up and at 'em, guys. We have to go now." I whispered as they crawled out of bed. "Put on your packs." I instructed as I gathered the stuffed the bags and jar of grease from beneath the bed. I was so proud when they quickly and quietly did as they were told, helping each other. I put on my own pack, and began to slather the grease on the window's hinges.

I'd found that the window creaked open raggedly with lots of popping noises when I'd tried earlier in the day. Once the hinges were thoroughly coated, I pushed the window, waiting for something to break or fall and wake up the entire town. To my surprise- and relief- they opened silently. "Okay, ups-a-daisy," I said, lifting each one out the window then handed Aiko the jar. I figured I might as well keep it; perhaps it would be useful in the near future...

"Eeeeewwwww," she whispered, holding the jar of jellied-liquid away from her and sticking out her tongue. Taro scrunched up his nose in disgust.

"I'm sorry," I said, stepping out onto the fire escape and shutting the window carefully behind me. "Here, I'll take it now," I said. She didn't hesitate to hand it over. I quickly packed it away, and made a motion to them to hold each other's hands. The metal steps creaked and groaned as we descended five stories, and used the grease again on the metal ladder that would take us from here down to the ground. It was really rusty, and I knew there was no avoiding the loud clang it would make when it hit the ground below.

"Okay, here's what we're gonna do, we're going to stand on the ladder, and jump and down to make it fall," I whispered to the twins. "It's gonna be really loud when it falls, and your feet might hurt some, but we've got to run. Just like when you ran races for mommy. Follow me, running as fast as you can, okay?"

Their eyes widened, "Wow," they said, looking at each other. Leave it to the twins to make bustin' outta the clink the cutest and most fun thing ever.

"As fast as we can?" Aiko asked, bewildered. I nodded solemnly.

"But you always tell us not to run," Taro- the voice of reason at only four years old- looked at me with big, worried brown eyes.

"You guys have my permission," I began, "to run as fast as you can when I tell you, okay?" They nodded happily, and I helped them to the outside of the ladder. They were both small enough to stand on and hold onto the same rungs. I positioned my hands a rung above theirs and my feet two below, with the twins between me and the ladder.

"On three, 'kay?" I whispered.

"Okay," the twins answered.

"One, two, three!" I said and we all three took one big jump. Our feet hit and the ladder let out and ear-splitting _SKKRREEEEEE_ as it moved only an inch or two. "Again, one, two, three!" We jumped and landed hard again, and the breath left me as we all went down.

_Ka-ka-ka-ka-ka-ka-KLANG!_ The ladder went as it descended, and I winced when it hit the ground, both from the noise and the spine-jarring jolt that went up my spine. I jumped off backwards, catching myself, and caught the twins mid-air. They both slammed into my chest, making me land hard on my butt. I heard a _whoosh!_ as I got the breath knocked out of me. I wasn't sure how, but I managed to get to my feet.

I grabbed the twins' hands, one on each side, "Run as fast as you can!" I rasped, taking off down the dimly lit midnight street.

"Hey! Come back here you yankis..." I heard the call fade as we ran. _So much for being discreet. Oh well..._ I heard shouts from behind us, and I urged the twins to keep pace with me though they were smaller.

_Oh, we've really done it now... We're all on our own, on the run, with no real destination in mind. It's just us three now... Finally._


	4. Chapter II C: Home Sweet Warehouse

We ran and ran, until all the city lights had faded, and we were nearing another. "Aneko, how far away from there are we?" Taro asked, clearly wearing down much more quickly than I he would.

"Yeah, because my feet hurt Aneko," Aiko pouted, crossing her skinny little arms. Here we go...

"Only about ten miles (16 kilometers), and trust me, we still have a long way to go. Come on, we need to get to at least two more cities- including this one- tonight. We need to keep moving so the police won't find us and bring us back. If they think we ran away, they would think that we'd just try to stay in that town like a bunch of scared little kids." We continued to move at only a slightly slower pace. "But when we get there, we'll eat, okay?"

Aiko spoke up suddenly, "Why couldn't we have just stayed there, Aneko? Besides the yucky-blucky food and the fat lady it was nice there."

"Yeah," Taro agreed, "and our bed was warm, and they gave us a room with other kids our age."

I heaved a sigh, "Okay, I'll tell you why we couldn't stay," I began gently, "So you guys answer this one. How old was the oldest kid you saw there?"

"Fifteen," they answered together.

"Okay then, fifteen. Why wasn't there anyone there older than fifteen?"

"Because fat-lady said they had jobs," they responded.

"Okay, good answer. If they had jobs that means that the orphanage wasn't letting them stay there for free, right? Right. Now, answer me this, what was it that you two kept wanting to do to that puppy last summer?" I asked, knowing they knew the answer. They knew I knew it, too.

"Adopt it," they chorused together.

"Right, so at that orphanage, I heard the fat lady and Mr. Social Worker say that they wanted someone to adopt us. But they said that no one would want me because of my age and what happened. They both agreed, though, that someone would adopt you guys as soon as you were in the system." I finished, letting them digest it.

Taro and Aiko frowned at each other. Oh no... not the thinking faces. Ugh, not all of us can be telepathic guys... "We don't believe you." Aiko anounced boldly. I stopped. Well that's new...

"Oh, you don't believe me?" I pointed at myself, not believing them. "You know what, I swear on cake. That's how serious I am." I started walking again for dramatic effect. Their eyes widened, and after a few moments they scampered after me.

"You're not serious are you?" Aiko looked at me incrediously, her confidence in her arguement obviously faltering.

"I think she's serios Aiko." Taro said, then he whispered, "I mean, she swore on cake... she means it."

"That's right, listen to your brother. And yes, I mean it. That's why I said it. I'm trying to get you to understand why we had to leave. They weren't going to let us stay together. We would to different places and never see each other again." I looked down and asked gently, "You guys understand, right?"

They nodded and spoked together, "Yes, we love you, Aneko." They hugged my legs. "Don't ever leave us Aneko."

I stopped right there, "I love you both too, and I promise I'll never leave you."

We walked thirty more miles (48 kilometers) that night stopping only to eat and rest every twenty or so. I knew it was hard on the twins, but I was forced to put as much distance between us and the city where they were inevitably looking for us. The next day about noon I was wondering about what to do with the pint-and-a-half of meat-slime I had left when Taro spoke up, "Look Aneko, it says that truck is headed to Tokyo."

"Oh, good boy!" I said as I picked them both up and squished them against me as hard as I could. The only thing that made me stop were gasps of "Stop!", "hurts...", "can't... breathe", and "too... much... LOVE!" I laughed softly and put them down, then reverted into my now-to-often-used-planning-mode.

Thirty minutes later we were on our way to Tokyo in a truck full of... well, I wasn't sure what, but that didn't really matter.

Trying to be quiet on the bumpy ride was hard, even for me. I hit my head on a metal rack above me three times, and the entire I was terrified that the box which was perched rather precariously would fall on the twins. "Aneko," Aiko spoke up, "what's in this box, it says 'Personal Vibrators.'" She began to lift one of the flaps open curiously.

"Noooooooooo!" I rasped in a whisper-scream voice as I leaped to my feet, falling my way to her because my feet had been numb for quite some time now. "Those are not for children!" I slammed the box closed. Sitting on top fo it I said, "Hey we've got a long ride, why don't you two try to get some rest. I know you're tired."

They pouted and asked together, "But what's in the box?"

"None of your beeswax children, now off to bed. There's a clear spot right there, and you can take my coat." I clapped twice, a quick 'ta-tap' that meant, 'right now!' and 'no arguing!' The twins yawned as they grumbled, but they did what I said. After a while soft snores filled the back of the truck, and I started thinking. A lot. Again.

I was wondering exactly how far away we needed to get to be safe; a small town would definitely be ideal, though. Somewhere we wouldn't be bothered; where we could get on with our lives in peace. Maybe we could even look for our long-lost father; surely he would take us in if he knew we were Sakura Tamutso's kids. The truck continued to add coal to my train of thought as it rattled and bumped down the road long after my legs had fallen asleep for a second time. I was begining to feel the disorientation of being completely exhausted when the truck screeched to a halt, throwing me against a stack of boxes.

Taro and Aiko roused, having had their heads slammed against a wall of the truck. "Oww..." they whispered, rubbing their heads.

"You two okay?" I asked, and they nodded. "Okay, get everything together, on three we're going to jump out and run like stink, got it?"

"'Kay," they said as I helped them with their things, though they'd started even before I'd finished my sentence. I'm so proud... Various bangs and crashes came from the back of the truck as we put ourselves in front of the door.

"One," I breathed as someone began to shout orders, "two," I heard someone place their hand on the handle, and I sucked in an adrenaline spiked breath.

KLA-KLA-KLA-KLACK! The door clattered up, letting the dim light of sunset spill in at the same time that I yelled, "Three!" We all three leaped- well, I guess I did most of the leaping- out of the truck. Some guy put his nose right in my knee's way as we tumbled out, but we were on our feet before any of the men unloading the truck had seen our faces.

And we were running again. I wasn't sure what city we had stopped in, but it was way to small to be Tokyo. I ran ahead of the twins, guiding them through the winding streets. It was snowing, and the wind was wildly whipping my braid into my face. Everything looked bleak in the gray light of the over-cast. The snow was heavy and wet, chilling me through my coat straight to the bone. Taro and Aiko puffed out identical clouds fo warm breath as they clammored down another alley until we were almost out of town.

"Okay," I weezed out, "food here, then a place to spend the night, and after breakfast we leave." I held open the door of a small ramen restraunt, and the tuckered-out-twins nodded as they passed under my arm. "Don't say anything about us, or the orphanage, or the truck, okay?"

"Okay," they said at the same moment that a warm wall of air from the restraunt hit us and we all heaved a sigh.

"Aaahhh," we all smiled lazily and went to a table in the corner. It was deliciously quiet in the restraunt, the only noise coming from the two men watching the news on a low volume. Oh please don't let us escaped fugitives have full news coverage...

"What can I get you guys?" a short, dark haired waitress with very thick eyebrows smiled at us, and I was surprised how genuine kindness nearly moved me to tears. Maybe because it was the most I'd felt in days. At least I wasn't completely ignored or talked about. What was it mother always used to say? Oh yeah, 'You never know what you have until it's gone.' I don't think that statement has ever been more true... Hey, that reminds me...

"We'll need a few minutes to decided," I smiled back at her.

"Alrightie, then. I'll be back in a few," she turned and went to the table with the two men.

"Aneko, " Taro began in a whisper, "I think she's nice, but-"

"-She has a furry caterpillar for eyebrows." Aiko boldy finished, with Taro nodding in agreement. Though Taro was the older of the two, he was often more quiet than miss-saying-what's-on-her-mind Aiko.

"You guys can't say things like that, I don't care who starts the sentence, but if you plan on finishing it, do it nicely." I warned. "Now,we need to order cheap, and get a lot of it," they nodded, already staring down the menu as if would somehow give them recommendations or nutrition facts.

We searched and found a deal where they would bring out a whole pot of soup for everyone to share. All three of us ate ravenously, having only eaten rice cakes for the last few days. After eating until we were completely stuffed we flagged down the waitess to pay our tab. "Um, miss, do you know where we could find a train station?"

Her brow furrowed for a second and it looked like she was shaking away an unpleasant thought. "Um, yes, on the other side of town here, let me give you directions on a napkin," she looked up, her eyes surprisingly empathetic for a complete stranger. Folding my hand around the napkin, her eyes looked overly-concerned, "Please be careful."

Her gaze held mine until I cleared my throat, "And, um, what do you say to our new friend kids?" An overdose of cute should distract her...

"Thank you, Miss Lady!" the twins beamed, sparkling eyes included. They way they could smile and bat their eyelashes just made people want to do the unspeakable for them. Though it was very cute and useful, I feared the worst when it came to things such as ice cream and cake. I'll have to work up my immunity...

The waitress's lip quivered and she saw us to the door. After rounding the first corner we took off into the night. I was extra careful buying our tickets, trying not to attract attention in the crowded station. "Aneko?" Aiko asked, looking up at me as we waded through the stations.

"Yes dear?" I answered. They'd both been very quiet, which is good for right now, but it was very unlike the twins.

"Why didn't we take a train from the begining? And where are we going?" She looked so tired. I'm pretty sure we all looked like we'd been dragged behind a horse. It was hard to believe that our life had taken such a strange turn in only three days.

"Well, unfortunately I didn't think about taking a train until I started thinking about Momma, and I remembered how she'd told me that one of the first things she did when she came to Japan was ride the train..." I might need to shut up about that particularly sensitive subject right now... "And to answer your second question, near Tokyo, as fast as we can. I'm happy that we'll be able to get some rest."

"Aneko," Taro piped up, stiffling a yawn, "can we go somewhere quiet?" He rubbed his little eyes with his fists.

I patted his back and he slumped against my side. They were finally wearing down from their adrenaline highs. Can four-year-olds even get adrenaline highs?... "That's actually what I was thinking. I'm sorry that you guys can't get any rest because of this, if there was any other way, you know I would rather do it than this, but there's not. We have to take what we can get, and make something good out of it."

"It's okay..." they yawned, as the train pulled into the station. "We don't mind..."

"Come on, let's get settled so you guys can sleep." Once on the train I finally had some more of my precious thinking time. The truck had brought us almost half-way, then we got off. The time estimate on the train stated Tokyo was approximately three hours away, not including the two stops. I decided not to worry right now.

I sat in the window seat of the train near the door, with the twin's heads in lying in my lap. Moonlight shone brightly through the window, turning the twins silver, the carpet from dark red to purplish-black, and my hands white as snow. It just seemed to throw everyting into perspective. My God, my mother just died. The thought tore through my mind, making my breath catch in my throat. And now I'm completely and utterly alone on this. Lord, I know you're up there, and I'll do my best, but you've got to help me. Help me keep my promise, too, Lord. Thank you. Amen. I thought about my mother as I watched the countryside go by. I was so tired of worrying already, but I had to be strong for my twins. I couldn't even get another thought in before I drifted off.

I felt the train stop and I nearly toppled out of my seat. A voice came over the intercom anouncing that we were only ten miles (16 km.s) from Tokyo. Perfect... We must be pretty close to the bay, too... I gently shook the twin's shoulders. "Is it morning?" Taro asked groggily.

"Yeah," I glanced out the window, "the sun should be rising in an hour or so. Okay guys, this is our stop. We'll get breakfast and look around some!"

"Aneko, are we gonna find a home soon? 'Cause I miss sleeping in a bed." She picked up Taro's backpack and put it on him. Even though I knew it had to be done, I felt terrible for uprooting them like this, but I had to keep telling myself that they would understand to keep the guilt from eating me alive. But they're four years old, how can they understand? Will they understand when they get older? I continued to argue with myself when we stepped off the train.

"Okay, we'll get breakfast and talk some more." We got a warm breakfast in another family-ran restraunt, and to my wallet's relief, it was the cheapest meal we'd gotten so far. "We're gonna look for a home, okay? And... as much as much I'd like us to have a nice big house, I don't think we can do that, and since today makes four days since we left the orphange, we have to lie low for a few months. Okay guys?" I told them, I hoped they would be okay with this... Maybe I'm trying to compensate for my guilt...

They smiled broadly,- the only way they could- "Okay!" they laughed and jumped up and down in their seats together, making their uncombed blonde hair get all floaty. They each asked a different question at same time. Taro asked, "Do we get to pick it out?" At the same time that Aiko asked, "Can it be pretty?"

I smiled, "Yes," I nodded at Taro, "and yes," then to Aiko. "We all get a say in where we live. I really feel good about this place. We'll explore as soon as we finish up here. Upon hearing this, they began cramming their little faces. I let them do it.

I took a step out of the restraunt and found that the sun had begun to rise. We headed down the street away from the train station into a wide square. The square was right in the center of the town, and had an excellent view of the buildings that grew taller and taller as they grew further and further away from the square. Upon entering the square we all gasped at the best sunrise I'd ever seen. Wispy, purple and orange clouds hung in a glowing pink sky. Framed by the clouds, a red sun shimmered as it set fire to the tops of the tallest buildings, casting visible rays of sunlight down on the square below. Puddles, windows, and windshields threw wild, color-tinted reflections onto everything.

In front of us was every type of vendor imaginable, setting out their wares for the day. Everything from apples to zippers; there were fruit and vegetable vendors; clothes, shoes, and hat merchants; bread, rice, and noodle vendors; even some guy selling electronics from USB drives to entire computers. "Wow..." we all whispered together.

"Look at the pretty bracelets that lady is selling, Aneko!" Aiko said, tugging at my sleeve, pointing, and jumping up and down like she needed to pee. _She was always one for fashion..._

"Ahh," Taro sighed, gazing at the sunrise, "I like the colors here, Aneko." He held onto the tail of my jacket with a lax grip.

"Come on guys, I think this is the mainstreet, we can look, okay guys? Emphasis on _look_," I said as I used air-quotes around "look".

"Yeah! Yeah!" they cheered and smiled at me. So we went down the street, the twins _ooh_ing and _aah_ing at the strange and wonderful wares that this market place had to offer. We eventually made it beyond the market place and into the rest of the town. Most of the housing here was in the form of apartments, but there was an unusually large amount of abandoned buildings here. First we looked in alleys trying to find out of the way places with little to no foot traffic; places where not many eyes would fall. Though I hated it, I looked in the darker, drearier places, and we still found nowhere to live.

"Aneko, look..." the twins pointed up at the grey sky.

"Oh no," I groaned dreadfully, "it's past noon, we still haven't found a place to stay, and now it's going to rain!" I threw my hands up in frustration. I sighed, we'd come so far, it would just be useless to try to get mad now. "Come on guys," I instructed calmly, taking both of their hands in mine I steered us back in the direction of the square. A clap of thunder echoed over the town, and I walked a little more quickly._ Maybe we can out-run it..._ The clouds grew darker, and flashes of lightning in the distance grew more frequent by the minute. _Which way was the square?!..._

"Taro, Aiko, do you remember which way we came?" Their lips wobbled, and they shook their heads shamefully. "That's okay, it'll be fine." _Rats... Yeah, like rats running in a maze..._ I felt a drop of rain hit my nose, and then like someone pulled a lever, buckets upon buckets of water dumped on us.

"Aneko, look, that door is almost open!" The twins shouted of the pouring rain and the raging thunderstorm. I went where they were pointing, without asking any questions. In an out-of-the-way alley there was a large metal door in the side of what appeared to be a warehouse. Sure enough, the door was cracked the slightest bit, but I was surprised when even after I slammed my entire body's weight against the door, it didn't give at all. I fell to the ground and once again the wind was knocked out of me with a _whoosh!_ I quickly got up and tried to shoulder it open again.

"It's no good, help me," I shouted in to the downpour in the twin's general direction. I felt more weight push on the door, and it still stubbornly refused to open. I felt blindly for the hinges, and as I had suspected, they were reduced to rusted lumps of metal. "Get the grease out," I ordered, dropping my backpack from my shoulders to my hands. Four little hands worked the zippers and then the jar lid; they quickly passed me the meat-jelly. The first time I used the grease it was more liquid than solid, pliable and squishy like butter; only it's appearance bothered me then. Now I reached into the jar and felt my stomach heave at it's new texture. It felt like a soggy fish cake, all wet and fiberous, all lumped together in an entire foul-smelling mass.

Urging myself to quit being so squeemish, I dug out a handful of the nauseating mass and completely coated each of the three hinges. "Push again!" I yelled, and even though the hinges sounded like the souls of hell were trying to escape from them, the door only opened the slightest bit more before hitting a solid object. I mentally cursed the building as a deafening crack nearly bursted my eardrums. _Have to get them inside..._

"On three! One, two, three!" we each gave a shove, but it was no use. "See if you both can slip through, and move whatever is blocking the door." The twins immediately tried to squeeze in sideways, Aiko going first. Her first leg made it through with only minnimal effort. _This is good..._ She kept squeezing and her hip got stuck. I tried to shoulder the door open a little more. She sucked in her belly and held her breath, and with a grunt she slipped through.

Taro did the same, only catching his foot at the last second and losing his shoe. "It's okay, go on, I'll get it," I called after him. I tried to lean into the doorframe as much as I could, to keep everything dry but it was a futile effort. I heard a series of metallic moans, groans, and screeches. _God, if you're listening, __**please**__ don't let them hurt theirselves._ Something ground on concrete, making the thunderstorm right on top of me seem quieter by comparison. The grinding continued for five straight minutes, never once letting up.

Aiko poked her nose through the crack, "Push again, Aneko, we moved a big, heavy thingie, so you can open it."

I took a deep breath, and backed up to the other side of the alley, "Stand back!" I yelled as I ran at full speed towards the door.

"Hey Aneko, look! It opened on its-" I was already in a flat-out sprint, and I easily passed Aiko before I realized the door had been opened for me.

"Huh?" I craned my neck as I ran, seeing Aiko with one hand on the doorknob looking at me with eyes as big as saucers. I didn't see Taro anywhere near the door. _After all that it opened by its-_

I felt my toe catch something and then the concrete swirled up to my face.

~*~*~*~*~

"...ko... ake up, An..."

"Uhhhh..." I groaned at the throbbing behind my eyes as Aiko's face streched as if being reflected in a funhouse mirror, "Huh?" then, without warning, my vision snapped back into place like a rubber band. "Wooaah..." I felt my head reel, and I grabbed it with both my hands to try to steady it.

Aiko quickly cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "She's awake now, Taro!"

"Ughh..." I tried to sit up, "how long have I been out?"

Aiko took my hand and tried to haul me up, scrabbling backward, "Just a few seconds. You fell down, and we rolled you from your tummy to your back. Taro took care of our stuff- and we should get rid of that yucky-blucky stuff in the jar- and went to look around some, and I said I would stay here with you!" She beamed at me as I rose, and continuing to scrabble backwards she fell on her dairie-aire.

"Awww," I smiled, "how sweet, let's find Taro."

She stretched up and grasped her hands at me, "Ups-a-daisy, Aneko!" she told me in English. It was something mother always told us. I'd always liked it, and the twins were always asking the her to say the strangest things in English. Things like puppy, cake, love, mother, moon, frying pan, television, flowers, sunshine, and of course since they were children, poot.

I pulled her up off the floor, and gave her a kiss on the cheek as she sat on my forearm and I patted her back with my other hand. As soon as she put her chin on my shoulder she undid my French braid. "Aiko," I began.

"I think it looks prettier this way," she said as she combed through my shoulder-length hair.

I sighed, "Taaaaarrrooo! Where are you?" I yelled.

"Up here!"

I looked up, and for the first time, noticed my surrondings. Taro stood on a metal landing suspended above humongus stacks of precariously perched cardboard boxes straight ahead. On both sides of us were largel-and very dusty- machines. I walked slowly and listened to my soggy footsteps on the cold concrete. "Aneko?" Aiko backed up and looked me in the eyes.

"Hmm?" I asked.

She leaned back and pointed straight up, "How tall is the ceiling?"

"Well-" I tilted my head back for a better look, "woah... um, well, I would say about fifty or sixty feet (15-18.24 meters)." The ceiling stopped about four stories up and peaked into a giant sky light that took the place of a ceiling. The rain was still coming down hard and the thunder rumbled like an earthquake. I began walking again, past the rows upon rows of alien-looking machines. _I wonder what those do..._

_KRUNCH!_ "Ack!" I stepped back, pulled out of my thoughts and hurled back into reality. "Packing peanuts... I'm silly aren't I, Aiko?"

"Yeah," she giggled, "but that's okay. I like it that way," and with that she went back to fiddling with my hair while I tried to navigate through the teetering canyon of boxes.

"Taro," I called out, "where's the stairs?" I heard a series of metallic bangs and then Taro came from behind a tower of boxes.

"Aneko," he panted his brown eyes wide with excitement. "Come on, you gotta see this. This place is incredible, come on, come on!" He ran behind me, and pushed on my back, his feet slipping on the concrete. "Go, go, go!"

"Alright, alright, you lead the way," he took off around a corner and flew up the rickety metal steps that looked all too much like the ones on the fire escape at the orphanage. "He's excited about this, isn't he?" I asked into Aiko's hair._ How does her hair always manage to smell good?..._ I felt her nod into my shoulder. We climbed up about a story and I half-expected every other step to give a scream and plummet to Earth, but to my relief not a single one did. The landing we came to had a view of the entire place, and I was just now seeing how _big_ this place really was. "I wonder what they used to make here..." I whispered to myself. There wasn't really much, this building had obviously been abandoned for years, with a carpet of packing peanuts and woolly blankets of dust to prove it.

"Aneko, look in this room," Taro beckoned me into a doorway opposite of the railing. The door was thick and made of wood, and it led into a room that smelled as if it had been shut and never had any fresh air in years. I tried the light switch; nothing.

"Hop down, Aiko. Look for blinds or something, we need light," we searched blindly, groping around and I hit my shins more than enough times to give me permission to curse.

"Here!" the twins chirped, letting the blinds of a large window fly up. Hazy gray light filled the room, revealing a forgotten office. It wasn't very big, but it would be perfect as a bedroom/living room/kitchen. It had plenty of desks with papers piled high as the sky on them. I started rifling through folders and files, data and documents.

"This place used to make books," I announced, holding up some addressed envelopes.

Taro and Aiko completely forgot what they were doing and turned to face me, eyes as big as soup bowls. For a moment they were speechless; an incredible feat for the twins, especially Aiko. _Wow, a new record. A total of five whole seconds... _Books were one of our favorite things, always full of adventure, mystery, suspense, and sometimes even love. Much like cake, we treasured books; they were strange and wonderful things that seemed to magicaly bring us all closer together. Among music, cake, and God, books were one of the things that our mother had taught us to cherish. Sakura Tamutso was completely enthralled by learning, and due to this we all had learned to read and write at an early age. The twins were reading before they could talk.

Taro and Aiko had finally managed to find their voices, "What_ kind _of books?" They asked me critically as they scurried over and began destroying any order there could have possibly been on the desk before me.

"Manga," I replied, moving to another desk. The desk the twins had begun to pilage was now a lost cause. "This used to be a VIZ Media warehouse. And this-" I sweeped my arm outward, guesturing to the room- "used to be the office."

"Aneko, can we stay here and read books... forever," Taro asked solemnly, "because I miss it when Momma used to read us books. I miss Momma..." _Well, this conversation has just taken a complete nose-dive, now quit talking to yourself and think, stupid!..._

"Yeah, I miss her cooking... and my bed..." Aiko moped. _ACK! Do something!_

"It's alright guys. Momma loved you so much. You might not have been able to see it, but I was. She loved you so much that when you were sick she would rock you to sleep in her arms instead of worrying about her beauty sleep. She loved you enough that she would wait for you everyday outside of you're daycare center. She loved you two so much that she spent hours every year obsessing over your birthday's and Christmas presents. And if she were here right now, she'd want you two to remember her and be happy, not sad because she's not here anymore. It was just her time to go, and that's it. Heaven was finally ready for Sakura Tamutso!" I punched my fist in the air.

"Aaah-haa-haa," the twins laughed, and smiled. They knew exactly what I meant. Sakura Tamutso would have her way even if it meant the end of the world, she always said she was, "As stubborn as a mule." I think it was some form of metaphor used by the Americans. "Yeah, she told funny jokes, too." the twins said together. "Like, what's black, white, and red _aaaalllllll_ over?" Taro and Aiko spread their arms, exasperating. According to Momma, this was one of the oldest jokes in the book, but the twins thought it was funny everytime. Funny how such a simple joke could turn these incredibly mature four-year-olds into regular four-year-olds.

"What?" I asked, already knowing the ansewer.

"A sunburnt penguin!" they gasped, already trying to catch their breath from laughing. I always wondered why a sunburnt pengujn appealed so much to the humorus side of the these particular tots. Even though, this whole thing was as old as the hills- another metaphor that mother used alot- I couldn't stop myself from laughing.

I wiped the tears away from my eyes, and held onto the stitch in my side, "Keep looking around guys, I'll go this way." I pointed to the right where there seemed to be some sort of bathroom. In fact, there was a bathroom, but no running water, and across the hall from that an ex-employee lounge. Equiped with a dried up sink, a microwave that was so out of date that the timer was a dial, a rust-bitten folding chair, and a mini-fridge. _This looks promising... _It was completely empty except for an entire brick of seran-wrapped mold that was most likely reffered to as a "sandwhich" in a past life. _This would go wonderfully with my magic texture-changing meat remnants... Mmm, tasty... Okay, I think I'm gonna barf now... ughh... _"We have a hot plate!" I called to the twins, "Did you two find anything interesting?" I asked as I emerged from the little kitchen.

All of the blinds were pulled up, revealing even more clutter. It was still raining cats and dogs outside, and the lightning forked wildly across the sky. Other than myself, I was alone in the office. I opened my mouth to call for them again, "Taro, Ai-"

_BAM!_ I nearly screamed at the sound of the thick metal door across the room from me being thrown open. "Look, Aneko!" the twins shouted as they entered through the door and my heart started beating again. I desperately tried to ignore the fact that they were both dripping wet, and more to what they were so excied about.

"Look!"

"Look!"

"Look!"

"Look!" They alternated, jumping once when they spoke.

"Okay, okay," I couldn't help but smile, "you two show me." They both laughed and smiled, each grabbing a hand and towing me along as much as a pair fo four-year-olds could. Rain was pouring throught the open door, so it was something outside that had peaked their interests. As much as I didn't want to, I stepped out into the torrnetial downpour. There was another metal landing outside the door that stretched the entire length of the wall. I tried to use my hand to shield my eyes from the pelting rain, "Okay, what were you two so-" I stopped my sentence and squinted harder at the the splash of color I'd spotted dead ahead of me. "Wow..." I said as everything began to swim into focus. Through the storm the square came into view, and with it, the giant cobblestone mosaic that covered the entire square. Swirling blues, purples, and greens collided with poppoing reds, oranges, and yellows to create a collage of roses. Little roses, with hues of every color came together to make one, big mutli-colored rose. The center was white, and darker and clearer colors unfolded away from the stem.

I was briedly fascinated with the fact that we were only about three-hundred yards from the market place an its mosaic before I realized I was as wet as a drowned cat. "Ack!" I shouted as I dove back into the office with the twins, slamming the door behind me.

"Hee-hee-hee," the twins laughed and pointed at me, "Aneko's all wet!" they chortled, jostling each other lovingly.

I smiled, "C'mere, you two!" I said as I scooped them up. They shrieked with laughter as I plinked them down on a desk and tickled them mercilessly.

"No, no, hee, hee-eek! Stop!" They squealed and squirmed, trying to excape.

"Never! _Muhahaha_!" I mock-maniacally laughed. "Oh!" I gasped, clutching at my heart, " My evil heart is giving out! Gravity... working... against me..." I exagerated, slowly sinking down to effectively squish them.

"Ahh, no!" they laughed as I pinned them to the desk, and taking my "last" breath.

"I think she's dead, Aiko." I spotted Taro's Chesire Cat grin through a cracked eyelid. _Stay still... See what they'll do..._

"Hmm," Aiko specutlated, "let's tryyy... this!" they both began tickling my sides, furiously.

"Ahhh!" I shrieked, scrabbling backwards off the desk, "You win, you win! I surrender." I said, holding up my empty hands. They smiled, flashing unbrushed teeth. "But Taro," I said dramatically, "you're a terrible actor. We'll have to fix that." They hee-hawed some more and I sighed with a smile, "Come on guys, let's try to get dry while we wait for the rain to quit."

Thank you God, I know we were to busy to hurt earlier, but I know it's coming soon. Thank you Lord, this place has plenty of leg-room for all of us, and Mom, if you can hear me... I miss you. I really do. Amen.

"Let's go pick out some books, too." I suggested, "We need to get a head-start on cleaning up around here, so we should start ASAP."

"Yay!" they twins threw up their arms in pure joy, "We get to stay-ay,we get to stay-ay!" they chanted. _Finally... I can see it now... "Home Sweet Warehouse" Sounds peachy-keen to me._

A.N. I fiiiiinallyyyyyy got this chapter done after weeks of handwriting, and days of typing. Thank you guys for sticking with this story (you _know_ who you are...), and I promise you it's going to pick up. More and more of the Vampire Knight characters begin to enter, as the plot thickens. I, as you probably already know, do not own Vampire Knight, just Aneko and her beloved family members (and the caterpliar-eyebrowed waiteress). I must say though, I'm proud of Aneko, and her interal monologue is a riot for me and my friends; her trademark is that almost all of her thoughts end in "...", which I find very humorous. I believe this story is a strange mis of of fluff and sadism (if you don't know what these mean, ask someone who does), no masochism, though, sorry. Until next time, Ryoko Tukiko.


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